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CHA’s Dustin Wilson: a model on and off the track

If the rest of the world had a work ethic like this young man does, we’d all be able to run a sub 5-minute mile.

Dustin Wilson, a junior at Chestnut Hill Academy, has been running since 6th grade, due to the sports requirements of CHA.

However, it was something he continued to do when he realized he was quite good at it.

When asked about when he discovered his talent, he said it was around his freshman year.

“Around that time I found out about places like Letsrun and Dyestat, taken over by ESPN Rise, [websites that cater to high school track on a national level] and got really motivated to be as good as the nationally ranked guys who were making the headlines on these sites,” Wilson said.

Wilson has a rigorous training program, taking no days off. His week consists of four easy days, one strength day, one speed day, and one race (or another easy day if there is no race).

Easy days are a run ranging anywhere from 45 to 75 minutes, and if there is a fifth easy day, it’s 90 minutes.

Strength days are longer and slower workouts with shorter rest periods. These days consist of 6 to 8 x 800 meters or a tempo run of 3 to 5 miles. Speed days are faster, shorter intervals with more recovery time, like 10 x 400 meters.

Not only is he talented and hardworking, he is also extremely modest. He holds a multitude of school records, has won and placed highly in races at the national level, yet he still considers himself as only “good”.

What does the future hold for Dustin Wilson?

“We’re working one season at a time,” he said, “When I get down to 9:00 for the 2- mile or 4:14 for the mile, then I will start thinking about the sub 8:50s and 4:10s, and when I get there, I’ll start thinking about the next set of barriers. By that point, chances are I will be in college and running the 5/10k though. We’ll see how it plays out or how far it’ll take me, I really don’t know. But if I will ever become ‘good’ at anything, it’ll probably be the 5/10k on the track.”

But if that’s not enough, Wilson’s work ethic extends beyond the track. He’s an honors student and a regular on the school’s high honors list. He has been second in class for the past three years, boasts a 4.1 GPA, and has won the class of ’59 award for intellectual curiosity the past two years.

Where does this drive come from?

“I really don’t know. I just generally like to do well at things, and dislike mediocrity. That’s about all the motivation I need. As long as I know I’ll be at least somewhat successful at something I’ll normally try it, so it was just a matter of time until I found running as something that I was good at and wanted to do and get better at.”